Heyman further said he will introduce legislation next spring that mandates the government to cut emissions by 40 per cent over the next 13 years.

“The reason we’ve put together this advisory council today is to help us work through the issues of how we balance reductions across industry, across buildings and homes, and across transportation in order to meet those targets,” he said.

“I look forward to working with them, I’m confident we can meet goals.”

The panel also includes representation from municipalities, First Nations, environmental groups, labour and the energy and construction industries.

The council will replace the BC Liberal appointed Climate Leadership Team that advised the former government on its Climate Action Plan.

Under B.C. law, the province is to cut carbon emissions to 80 per cent below 2007 levels by 2050, while the federal government has committed Canada to reducing emissions to 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 as a part of the Paris Agreement.